Thursday, September 28, 2017

Commissioner Catherine Smith - Dept. of Economics and Community Development (DECD)

All in attendance enjoy the portion of the event presented by Gerry Holland﻿

On Friday, September 22, the College of Engineering, Technology,
and Architecture (CETA)and the Barney School of
Business hosted a Tech Talent Workshop in the 1877 Club, located in the Harry
Jack Gray Center. The workshop was a collaboration with CETA, the Barney School
of Business, and Connecticut industry to discuss an evolving partnership. The
University of Hartford understands the growing urgency to better prepare
students to meet the needs of a business and industry upon graduation, as well
as incumbent worker training. The workshop was a call to Conn. industry to
express their current needs in a robust and growing job market.

Dean Louis
Manzione opened the event expressing his desire to “develop public, private,
and government partnerships to ensure that we stay connected” to the needs of
the Conn. business and industry. The University needs to support the rapid
growth of technology and change in Conn. in order to stay connected to the best
jobs for future students, and the best outcomes for Connecticut businesses. Dean
Manzione explained that the solution may not be a new discipline or
concentration in our college, but could mean a workshop, or a special
certificate program. CETA’s goal is to help Conn. industries quickly realize the
skills they need for the current workforce, for both future students and
current employees.

Commissioner
Catherine Smith from the Department of Economic and Community Development
(DECD) touched on some of her plans to attract and retain Connecticut jobs. The
DECD’s strategy for growth includes focusing on talent development, data
analytics, tourism, green technology such as fuel cells, and understanding the
connection between business and universities. Commissioner Smith expressed the
importance of talent development above all else.The “state has a workforce that is #3 in
terms of skill” and is “#4 in terms of productivity of our workforce relative
to all other states.” she expressed the importance of holding onto that level
of skill and productivity in Conn. because we know that is important to the
companies and workforce and what they are counting on for the future.

The
workshop included four guest speakers from the industry of Connecticut: Rob
Thomas ’04, Gerry Holland, Brian Romano ‘83, and Sergio Loureiro. The Senior
Vice President of CNA, Rob Thomas ‘04, spoke about data analytics and the
importance of engineers in the insurance industry. He explained that data
analytics are actually two separate things, data and the analysis of that data.
An example of how data is different now is that companies need someone to
engineer a digital interface for the customer to purchase insurance.It’s not just the technical skills that we
need here, we need practical skills, and we need to join the two, just like data
and analysis go together, explained Rob Thomas.

Vice President of Estimating and
Marketing for Bartlett Brainerd Eacott Inc., Gerry Holland, gave a poignant
analogy saying, if we stand in a circle and face inward it becomes much easier
to move and adapt to the change in design. The need to engage in the field with
different mediums of technology is cleanly evident in construction. Regardless
of discipline, we must stay connected and look to each other in order to adjust
and adapt to the rapid advancement of technology. Design, construction, and
institutions are tied together and must work together to meet the demands of
the future.

Manager of Control Systems and IT
for A.G. Russell, Brian Romano ’83, explained that as a lean company, his firm
cannot afford to take two years to train new graduates and recruiting employees
from other companies can cost up to $30,000 in relocation costs. Romano is
working with the University of Hartford and Central Connecticut State
University to develop ways to educate students and current employees to enable
them to be productive employees right away, such as workshops for current
employees, internships, apprenticeships, and adjusting University programs.

The
Vice President of Enterprise Capacity for Pratt and Whitney, Sergio Loureiro, mentioned
that the metrology certificate program, conducted by Professor Sahay and
Professor Ghosh, has been very successful for them. Rob Thomas made note that
these programs are what company’s need to train current employees and close an
existing skill gap. Loureiro believes anything that higher education can do
will be beneficial to “accelerate the knowledge transfer” and increase
productivity. He also points out that many aspects of the company will be
turning digital which will require new skills from their employees and future
students, and it is crucial to work together to customize the right learning
model.

The
workshop closed with a discussion. CETA already hosts events and programs that
aim to address some of concerns that were raised, such as the Networkology
events, the UTC Metrology certificate program, and the CETA Design Expo. The
Networkology event helps students socialize with working professionals in their
field. The CETA Design Expo enables students to have a crossover understanding
of the engineering field while working with their peers to design and present
their collaborative project to professionals in industry. CETA and the Barney School
of Business will plan follow-up events to discuss next steps and new approaches
to ensure the ongoing success of Connecticut business and industry.

Thursday, September 21, 2017

On Friday, September 15, twelve students from the Water
Quality Engineering Laboratory spent six hours at the Springfield Regional
Wastewater Treatment Facility conducting settling tests and performing
calculations to evaluate the facility's clarifier (settling tank)
capacity. The Springfield sewer collection system combines street
drainage and domestic sewage so that flow through the treatment plant can
increase by six-fold in a very short time period during rain events.
Operators need to understand how their clarifiers will perform so that they can
prevent solids from washing out of the plant to the Connecticut River during
these high-flow events.

Two professional engineers from Woodard & Curran who
specialize in wastewater treatment plant design and troubleshooting trained the
group in how to perform the tests and analyze the results. Professors
Brown and Dean Pines accompanied the group. Suez NA, operators of the
plant, hosted the event.

Later in the semester, three-person teams from this group
will visit four other wastewater treatment plants in CT and MA to perform
similar tests, providing a free service to wastewater treatment plants while
demonstrating the University's commitment to partnering with outside entities
to maximize the career, entrepreneurial, and intellectual preparedness of
students.

Wednesday, September 20, 2017

Three CETA engineering students, Erin
Sussmann (Electrical Engineering/Computer Science), Kaiti Stylianides
(Mechanical Engineering) and Nicole Carr (Biomedical Engineering), were crucial
members of the winning team, Mode, at the 48-hour long Hackathon hosted by Upward
Hartford and InsurTech Hartford during the weekend of September 8th.
Team Mode won first place in the competition and was awarded with a $5000 prize.

What is a Hackathon? Contrary to
what it seems, a hackathon is not an exclusively programming event. The three
engineering students arrived Friday (Sept. 8th) night at Upward Hartford, the
co-working space that hosted the event. They found out that Hackathons are for
anyone with an idea, a competitive spirit, and desire for knowledge. The only
things necessary include coffee, a laptop, and an open mind.

The general theme of the hackathon,
insurance technology, was presented as a broad challenge, inviting innovation
and imagination to come up with new ideas to tackle current issues with the technology
in the insurance business. Ideas were pitched and teams were formed as
“companies” to create a product and workable business plan. The 48-hour
marathon of research, design, and development began.

Kaiti, Nicole, and Erin, the three
CETA engineering students, joined Mode, a team of eclectic strangers whose
diversity in experience and excitement for the event made the hackathon truly
enjoyable. In addition, the team includes an English grad with a passion for
coding, two insurance company employees with a dream and the programming
know-how to make it happen, and a few business students from UConn. CETA
students did front-end coding to make the website usable and conducted research
into many aspects of the insurance industry. The students learned about all
aspects of creating a technology start-up, including development, marketing,
research & development, and financing. The idea of Mode became a real
insurance company for all phone-based e-commerce. The team worked specifically
on a very innovative aspect of the company for the 48-hour weekend, and by the
end, they had created a business plan, a financial plan, and a live demo of the
app.

Team Mode won first place in the
competition and was awarded numerous opportunities to continue developing the
company at Upward Hartford, along with the $5000 monetary prize. CETA students
were also able to take advantage of the wonderful opportunity to network with
professionals in the insurance and technology industry.

Monday, September 18, 2017

Civil, Environmental, and Biomedical Engineering Professor Ted Sussmann presented papers at the 11th International Heavy Haul Conference in Cape Town, South Africa, during the week of September 2-6, 2017. The papers presented were titled “Track Structural Design for Maintenance and Rehabilitation with Automated Track Inspection Data” and “Influence of Tie-Ballast Interface on Transition Zone Performance.

In addition to the presentation, Sussmann chaired a session titled “Ballast and Geotechnical” issues in Heavy Haul and served as a Technical Program Reviewer.The International Heavy Haul Association is a group that fosters technical developments that support the efficient transport of heavy haul freight traffic often associated with bulk natural resource commodities like iron ore.

Twenty years ago, Sussmann gave his first international presentation at this conference in Cape Town, so this conference served as a reunion of sorts.South Africa is a country rich in natural resources making the heavy haul railway a vital economic link.This served as the main reason for selecting one of their main ports, Cape Town, as the host city for this quadrennial conference. UNOTEs - 9/2017

Thursday, September 14, 2017

It is National Drive Electric Week! September 9-17,
2017 is dedicated to heightening awareness of the widespread availability
of electric and plug-in hybrid-electric vehicles and the potential benefits of
choosing electric over gasoline. In honor of National Drive Electric Week 2017,
CETA would like to congratulate the University of Hartford Green 707 club on
their first track test this past weekend. Paul Mangelsorf, the club president, announced
the test results on their Facebook page with some pictures of the action.
To check out their recent activity and more about their test
results: www.facebook.com/UHaGreen707

Tuesday, September 12, 2017

The
College of Engineering, Technology, and Architecture (CETA) is excited
to announce some recent changes to the CETA Student Ambassadors program.
The CETA Student Ambassadors program began in September 2013 as a
WELFund Grant funded program, now known as The Women’s Advancement
Initiative. As of fall 2015, the program became a CETA funded
organization and has continued to grow and evolve each year. Most
prominently, the organization has an updated name: CETA Student Ambassadors & Leadership Society and revised mission:

Program mission:

Promote leadership and communication skills of current undergraduates in CETA

Provide self-development opportunities for current undergraduates in CETA

Attract quality prospective students to all programs in CETA

Mentor entering, first – year students as they begin in CETA and for the first year

Build a more welcoming community for all CETA students

Provide exceptional community outreach for all CETA programs

Demonstrate equal representation of male and female society members to best portray CETA

CETA hosts various honor societies, however this leadership society
is unique for many reasons. The CETA Student Ambassadors &
Leadership Society represents the entire college, not just one
discipline / major, and requires a selection process to become a member.
In addition, our Leadership Society members will now serve as CETA’s
mentors as well, for all incoming First-Year students. Also, as a
prominent part of the Society’s mission, members will continue to reach
out to both prospective and current students, promoting CETA and the
University, furthering the goal of creating a welcoming and inclusive
community.

Beginning this fall 2017, all incoming, First-Year students received a
welcome message and introduction from their mentor prior to arriving on
campus and officially met all mentors at their first Freshmen Dialogue
class. In previous years, the mentor contact prior to arrival was not
the case; we, in CETA, hope that cultivating this relationship sooner
will ensure a smoother transition to University life. Throughout the
first semester, Leadership Society members will meet with their mentees a
minimum of three times, in addition to their initial meeting.

Within the CETA Student Ambassadors & Leadership Society is a
three member Lead Team that have been selected from the returning
members to lead the Society through the academic year. The returning
members must also apply for this honor and are selected by the previous
year’s Lead Team and advising faculty and staff.

The CETA Student Ambassadors & Leadership society is a fantastic
opportunity for CETA students. Members will attend various
on-campus/off-campus events, monthly training sessions/meetings,
one-on-one visits with prospective students and their families, and have
numerous opportunities to work on personal and professional
development. We are proud to announce the new and improved CETA Student
Ambassadors & Leadership Society!

If you would like to learn more about CETA Student Ambassadors & Leadership Society, please contact one of the advisors:

Monday, September 11, 2017

Hemchandra M. Shertukde, professor of electrical and computer engineering in the College of Engineering, Technology, and Architecture, has
received the the 2017 IEEE EAB/SA Standards Education Award for his
exceptional achievements in standards education activities. See the
official awards letter by downloading the document below.

Wednesday, September 6, 2017

On Friday, September 1, 42 members
of the civil engineering senior class attended a tour of the Springfield
Regional Wastewater Treatment Facility in Agawam, MA. The tour was part of
their CE 420 Water Quality Engineering I class.

Mickey Nowak, the facility manager
for Suez NA, hosted the tour which began with a presentation and discussion of
the importance of wastewater treatment and the processes used at the Springfield
Plant. Mr. Nowak led the group on a tour of the facility so that students
could see, smell and discuss each process in the plant, getting a sense of the
processes that they will be learning how to design in class. Students gained a
good sense of the true scale of the treatment plant, as well as how many
engineering disciplines contribute to the design and successful operation of
the facility.

Professor Todd Brown and Professor
Dave Pines accompanied the group of students on the tour. Professor Brown
scheduled the tour for the first week of classes to ensure the students would
have a common frame of reference as they begin to design the various components
within the wastewater treatment plant.

The College of Engineering, Technology, and Architecture's Department of Architecture had its
annual Urban Architecture trip to New
York City on Saturday, September 2nd, for the current Architecture
Graduate students and Undergraduate seniors. The trip routinely alternates
between New York and Boston each year and has been held every fall for the past
7 years. The purpose of the trip is to both examine interesting urban
architecture as well as to celebrate the new academic year.

This year, the students started the day
exploring the contemporary architecture of the World Trade Center Memorial,
PATH station, and Battery Park city. Afterward, the students stopped at
Chelsea Market for lunch.Then, the
group hiked the Highline Park and overlooked the new Zaha Hadid building, and
the construction of the massive Hudson Yards development. Finally, the students
visited the Cloisters Museum in Hudson Heights, where they examined midlevel
art and architecture set in a park overlooking the Hudson River. The day
ended with a sleepy bus ride home. Most of the group ate dinner in the
Architecture Department Crit Room and talked about their adventures of the day.
Professor Seth Holmes, the Architecture Graduate Program Director, remarked
that, “all in all, it was a great architectural adventure.”

Ariane Bamberg, Jan-Hendrik Höhnk, Alexis Hoff, and Maik
Wedig were the Graduate students that traveled to NYC on Saturday. The Undergraduate
seniors that attended the trip were Alvi Aliaj, Justin Barros, Richard Briggs, Damian
Collins, Justin Hernandez, and Daniel Sadowniczyk.The faculty that led and organized the event
are Professor Seth Holmes and Professor Ted Sawruk. The Manager of Graduate
programs, Laurie Granstrand, also attended the trip.

Friday, September 1, 2017

Takafumi has a B.S. in Biomedical Engineering
and Masters in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Hartford, and a
Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from UConn, Storrs.Takafumi comes to us from being faculty and
Director of the STEM Innovation Laboratory at Texas A&M University since
2014.At Texas A&M he received the
Alice Hamilton Award of Excellence in Occupational Safety and Health “For
Leadership through Science by Publishing.”

Yang Yang

Asst. Prof. Civil
Engineering / Architecture

Yang received his B.S. in Civil Engineering and
M.S. in Bridge and Tunnel Engineering from Tongji University in Shanghai,
China, and his Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from the Missouri University of
Science and Technology.He comes to us
from a position in structural engineering for the consulting company
Constructive Engineering Design, Inc. in Kansas.Yang’s research interests focus on mitigating
the impact of structural damage caused by natural and manmade effects such as corrosion,
earthquakes, wind, fire, and vehicular impacts.

Ted Diehl

Asst. Prof. in
Mechanical Engineering

Ted recently received his Ph.D. in Mechanical
Engineering from the University of Connecticut and holds a M.S. in Mechanical
Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a B.S. in Marine
Engineering Systems from the United States Merchant Marine Academy.He has taught at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy
for a total of seven years.Ted served
as the principal structural engineer in the naval architecture department on
several projects including structural and design and modifications of deck
houses for Military Sealift Command (MSC) vessels and the design of replacement
masts, science lab, sonar appendage and crane foundation for National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) vessels.